This invention relates to the butt jointing of structural members in the nature of wooden logs used in the construction of a log cabin.
In the building of log cabins, logs having a thickness of six to ten inches are laid one over the other to form the walls of the cabin. It is seldom that a single log will be long enough to form a full length of the wall of which it is a part, and there is a necessity in log cabin construction to provide a means for joining the ends of the logs. The traditional method is to have the ends of all logs in a wall terminate at the same location in the wall and to overlap the ends of joined logs that constitute the length of the wall. The overlapping logs are bolted together. This practice is wasteful because all logs do not start out by being the same length, but must be cut to a common length. Methods for avoiding this waste wherein the logs are joined at their ends wherever the ends should occur having regard to the original length of the log, have been proposed. Joining logs in this way involves a butt joint and the sealing of the joint. Various sealing methods have been devised for sealing the ends of logs so butted in the side of a building. They are an improvement over the traditional method because they save lumber. However, those methods of which I am aware leave considerable to be desired from the point of view of providing an air tight strong butted joint that can be easily and quickly assembled.